The Burden of Power
by Setsuna-X
Summary: Thanos is defeated, but not without some heavy casualties. It's up to Tony to fix everything (as usual), thankfully he has good people by his side - namely a Doctor with magic fingers. TAGS #Past Pepper Potts/Tony Stark,#Post Avengers Infinity Wars pt 1 #Infinity Gauntlet #Not Team Cap Friendly #Minor Character Deaths #Tony Stark Needs A Hug #Kissing #Friends to Lovers #IronStrange
1. Chapter 1

It wasn't often that Stephen used the Time Stone. Aside from learning about its capabilities he could count on one hand how often he had used it for real. Wong was constantly on him about messing with time and how it could fracture their reality and _blah blah blah._

So Stephen rarely used it.

Then Titan happened and suddenly he had this artifact that he needed to use. Using the Stone to see possible futures was a basic power. He had managed to master that quite easily and so when he viewed all those possible futures he knew that he could search indefinitely.

He wasn't lying when he told Stark that they only won once. There was only one outcome that was the preferred.

Stephen had watched as countless lives were destroyed, as his friends, Christine and Wong, perished over and over again. His own death happened more times than he could keep track of. And these were the more promising futures.

Ruin lay before them - countless deaths snapped away and fluttering in the wind as ashes.

It was all a terrifying prospect.

Yet there were futures that were better than others and in each of those there was one constant.

Tony Stark lived.

In every future Stephen saw that was even remotely passable as an optimistic future, the only thing they each had in common was that Tony Stark lived past Titan. This didn't mean that Tony ever made it to the end. More often than not the billionaire-turned-hero sacrificed himself in order to save everyone in the universe. It was a hefty weight to have on ones shoulders and Stephen himself didn't know if Tony could handle that - Stephen himself wasn't sure he could pull it off either.

And so with the many possible outcomes, with the millions of lives Stephen viewed and lived through, Stark slowly became Tony and soon there was only one real future they could all not just survive through, but also live with.

Titan was the crux. A fixed point in Time that could not be changed. And so when Thanos was about to kill Tony there was only one thing Stephen could do. He gave up the Time Stone, an infinity stone of untold power, to a creature that would do harm to with it.

It went against everything that Stephen was taught, Wong would probably yell himself hoarse if he had seen Stephen literally hand over an infinity stone. Yet it was the only thing he could do. There were probably many things that could have been done before it reached that point but there was no turning Time back now.

As he told Tony: they're in the End Game now.

Tony had stared at him with such a broken expression. Stephen could not connect the broken man in front of him with the same one he had met just hours earlier. The Stark he first met was as brash and egotistical as he had been led to know. Stark was abrasive, controlling, and full of himself. However at this moment Stephen wondered how truthful that really was.

If Stark were truly as controlling then why did he even bother trying to convince Stephen to take the fight to Thanos? Why do that when he could have easily just controlled the doughnut ship to Titan without even consulting him?

Full of himself? Stark had constantly proved what he could do and it was impressive. The nanites were a dream and Stephen idly wondered how they could be implemented in the medical field.

And abrasive - yeah that one was still true, but that came from experience. Stark had been in the world saving business a lot longer than Stephen and was involved in higher politics regarding world security.

Regardless, these labels still did not fit the Tony before him. The man sitting a few feet away looked defeated, looked as if he felt he was unworthy of the sacrifice Stephen had just made and for some reason it stirred something within Stephen.

If the path that Stephen saw came to pass he vowed that he would show Tony just how worthy he truly was.

* * *

Thanos' defeat and subsequent restoration of all the Souls he had snapped away was the best outcome Stephen could have hoped for. While within the Stone they had all converged and talked of what was to be done next. Spiderman, or rather Peter, had been frightened for a long time. Star Lord, other Peter (and that had been a weird bonding experience) was in denial and full of grief. The remaining Guardians seemed subdued but still had a burning flame of vengeance burning within them.

He thought it weird that he was unable to see or reach out to the others within the Stone but had probably been locked in place by the Space Stone as well.

Regardless, they emerged back on Titan next to a broken spaceship. Seemed Quill's transportation, the Milano, had been taken. Quill looked up at the sky and took out his golden device and frowned. He then took out some kind of communication device from his large red coat and held it up to his ear.

Peter let out a gasp as he quickly inhaled all the fresh air he could. Stephen looked at him, remembered what he meant to Tony and to his future self and placed a heavy hand on the teens shoulder. It helped ground Peter who looked like he was about to go into a panic attack.

While in the Soul Stone they had all come to the realization that they were pretty much dead. No one had really accepted it and it had been harder for Peter, who was still so young, but time seemed endless in that place and slowly they gave up and accepted their fate. He was sure that Peter was now going to think twice before doing anything hasty again like climb into an enemy spaceship.

Quills' voice rang out as he called everyone to him. He had gotten ahold of Nebula who had apparently also survived. She confirmed that Thanos was no more and that she was alive. Quill told her that they needed transport back to Earth. Stephen had wanted to attempt to Portal back, but he didn't want to risk it so soon. He needed to meditate in order to get his chakras realigned (and wasn't that something - a few years ago Stephen would have never thought somethings so _mystical_)

Nebula had confirmed that she was sending Rocket and Groot to go get them. All they could do was wait.

* * *

There was a mildly sappy reunion when the remaining Guardians came to fetch them. It was still somber since the one called Gamora had truly died at Thanos' hand. Quill had tried to search for her in the Soul Stone. Had raged when he realized that he could not leave the small area they were in. They never saw anyone else, stuck in one place as they were.

After some friendly ribbing and hugs everyone clambered onto the modified Milano and headed back to Earth. Seemed the original Milano had sustained some damage and Rocket had pieced it back together the best he could.

Peter knew to expect that Rocket was a literal talking raccoon and that Groot was a sentient tree, but he was still befuddled and amazed and the conversations soon after were both funny and heartening. It seemed they had all needed something like that, some kind of normalcy than what they had been through.

It had been inevitable that they had all become friends of a sort. Stephen liked Quill but the other man was a little too _plucky_ (to steal Tony's word). Drax and Wong would probably get along splendidly, and Mantis was very sweet. Peter was also a very smart boy with a good head on his shoulders and spectacular powers. He could see why Tony took him under his wing and how _possible-future him_ could end up liking the teen almost as if he was his own.

That had been a bit jarring but it was to be expected if one saw as many futures as he did.

Peter had grilled Rocket about what had happened but Stephen tuned out. He knew what had happened, knew the sacrifices Tony had made and just what burden he now carried as well. Stephen didn't need the Time Stone to know that Tony was going to be persecuted, feared, and sometimes outright hated for the power he now wielded but it could not be helped.

Earth was going to be a bigger target than ever before and no one was going to like that. It was a mystery as to why all the stones had congregated there, yet it was not a coincidence. Power begets power and it seemed almost like destiny. They warped to the closest system to Earth but had to fly for a while longer.

Earth had remained hidden for years, or at the very least was ignored and protected by other realms - Asgard more recently. It was the nexus to the other realms, much like how the Sanctum in New York was the nexus to other dimensions.

Their arrival into Earth's atmosphere was quieter than Stephen anticipated. Many of the satellites around the planet looked to be missing or fried. He was sure that Wong was probably sad to be missing out on all his favorite shows if the debris in space had anything to say about it.

He could hear Peter exclaiming in the background along with Mantis. Quill himself seemed to be entranced. It had been years since the other man had seen his home planet. He was so still that even Rocket didn't say anything when Quill handed over the controls willingly to raccoon. They lowered, centering in on the Avengers Compound. Stephen only recognized it because it had been on television the day Tony and Pepper Potts had announced their engagement.

It was weird - he thought the tightness in his chest would go away after accepting that he could not change the future nor make it come faster. He and Tony had gotten close in most of the futures he had seen. He tried to forget it, but it was hard. His feelings compounded with each possible future he saw. He had learned - a hard lesson literally beat into his head by Wong - that you could not live in the "possible", but had to live in the "now".

* * *

They landed and entered the Compound. All sorts were gathered. Stephen knew that not everyone had made it but he hadn't expected the amount of losses.

He wasn't the only one that had been caught in the Soul Stone it seemed. People were still reuniting and talking over each other, probably still trying to figure out what happened.

Peter was smart enough to put his mask back on and when they entered the room he could see Tony part through the crowd, a gauntlet of jewels on his arm. He looked at all of them, relieved, then grabbed Peter into one of the tightest hugs he had ever seen.

"Next time you stay on Earth," choked out Tony and Peter sobbed against him, constantly nodding his head as he held on tighter. It was a very heartwarming sight that even Stephen felt moved.

"Did Bucky come with you guys?" asked Steve as he rushed over without any concern about the group before him. Stephen scoffed as he looked away and approached Tony and Peter.

It was a little hard not to be prejudice. He and Tony had talked about Rogers and the part the man played in his life in several of the possible futures that Stephen had saw. There was no love-lost between him and the self-proclaimed Captain.

"I see that you made it," commented Stephen as he approached Tony. He was the only one not giving the genius a wide-berth. Everyone seemed to be looking at Tony like he was a beast - like he was some kind of monster. Stephen could feel the fear coming off of them. Tony looked up and stared at Stephen and seemed pleasantly surprised. "The Wizard of Oz returns," Tony quipped.

On second thought, Stephen could see there were a few still in Tony's corner. Banner and Rhodes were talking rapidly in a corner. Pepper and another woman with bob-cut black hair were on their phones and on tablets looking equal parts concerned and pissed off. "Here kid," said Tony handing over a phone to Peter. "Call them, they're worried."

Tony then walked over to Stephen. Stephen could hear Rogers bothering the Guardians with Falcon and a blonde-haired woman holding him back.

"I visited Titan and all I got was this lousy glove," said Tony as he wiggled his fingers near Stephen's face. He couldn't help it, he laughed.

"That was trite," he replied.

"So is this trinket," Tony said back rapidly. Stephen raised an eyebrow as if to say 'touche'.

"Stark - we're debriefing," called Fury over the chattering. A blonde woman was standing next to him holding a cat.

"In a minute, dear," Tony called back without moving his eyes from Stephen's. It was a power move and one that Stephen secretly approved of.

"Are you feeling alright?" asked Stephen. He took in Tony's appearance and saw that there was a line of sweat on his brow, he kept clenching the gauntlet in his fist as if it pained him, and his eyes were so full of emotion that Stephen had a hard time deciphering what it was.

"Let's just say that I've had better days, weeks even," replied the brunet.

"Tony," commanded Rogers, in a tone that was more suited at a school playground than after a universe catastrophic event.

He saw Tony visibly bristle. "Would you like to get out of here?" asked Stephen. He wasn't entirely sure why he had said it but it seemed as if Tony could use a break.

"Yes," Tony replied in a whisper, but with an excited gleam in his eye. Stephen wasted no time and opened a portal with his sling-ring.

"I figured you might not be comfortable with portals, but just close your eyes and take my hand," said Stephen after he watched Tony's eyes widen. Tony didn't say anything and just did as he was told. Several people shouted at once and several rushed to stop them but none reached them in time.

They ended up in a forest. It's one he had trained at for some time after the mantle of Sorcerer Supreme was passed on to him. "Where are we?" asked Tony as he looked around in wonder. The trees were tall and the air was full of the sounds of animals. It was peaceful and streams of sunlight filtered through the leaves.

"A forest in Albania. Right time of season too. Looks like we just missed the rain," idly commented Stephen.

"You know you'll be put on Fury's shit list because of this," said Tony, his voice full of genuine humor.

"He doesn't have any jurisdiction over me," replied Stephen, crossing his arms over his chest.

Tony chuckled. "I've needed this," he said as he took in a large breath of fresh air.

"How are you doing?" asked Stephen again since they were away from prying eyes as he stepped in close. Tony looked him up and down, as if analyzing the threat factor Stephen represented.

"You're a doctor, right? Well not sure you can help me, but I might need one," he answered with a shrug. Stephen didn't doubt it. Defeating a delusional tyrant was always taxing.

"I'll bet."

"And you?"

"Me? Well I was stuck in what felt like limbo for an undetermined amount of time with the Guardians of the Galaxy and your Spider kid. Not much to do aside from talk to one another. It was exhausting for a while."

Tony had a look of guilt on his face. "I should have gotten you guys out sooner. I should have gotten everyone out," said Tony, his voice was self-reprimanding.

"What do you mean?" Stephen asked, stopping Tony.

"Well, it must be hard to ignore but I kinda have this glove of destiny or whatever and can practically harness the power of the stones. It was not easy to release everyone from the Stone, but even still I'm sure there are others still trapped there."

Stephen looked intrigued. "So you were the one to release us, not Thanos?" he asked calmly. Tony walked over to a large tree trunk and sank onto the floor by its roots. Stephen followed in a sedate pace and sat next to him, their shoulders brushing occasionally. Tony took in a deep breath.

"How much do you know?" he asked as he ran a hand through his hair. Stephen chose his words carefully.

"Not much. Most of what I think I know are from memories of possible futures."

"So you gave up the stone knowing this would be the outcome?" asked Tony a bit harshly.

Stephen shook his head. "There were many different roads that one action could have taken, some more grave than others, but from what I heard second-hand, this was the best possible outcome."

Tony rose suddenly, agitated and tense. He paced back and forth, his arms in constant motion. "I don't understand how this could be the 'best outcome' - do you have any idea on how many died? How many I failed to save? How many sacrificed themselves for me? For the opportunity to end this?" Tony looked like a man ready to face the gallows. It was a sight that tore at Stephen's heart.

"I know you might not believe me, but this was possibly the best outcome," Stephen said so sternly that Tony stopped pacing and stared at him. His gaze bore into him so sharply that Stephen realized that Tony might be seeking absolution in his words. He needed someone else to tell him that he did the best he could, that this was the best he could do and that they could hope for.

Stephen stood up and approached Tony, arms outstretched as if to quell a startled animal. Since Tony did not move away Stephen walked closer still. He reached him, placed a hand, with its shaking fingers, onto Tony's shoulder as a solid, steadying weight and looked him deep in the eyes.

"This was the best outcome," he repeated, making sure to enunciate his words perfectly. Tony took in a shuddering breath, closed his eyes and let the air out of his lungs slowly. When he opened his eyes again he looked steady and more assured of his decisions than before.

"Thanks, Stranger Danger," he said warmly.

"Call me Stephen," replied the doctor.

Tony let a small, genuine smile spread across his face. "Yeah alright, Doctor Strangelove," he replied with a wink. Stephen laughed.

"Haven't heard that one before."

Tony joined in the laughter, but soon enough it was as if the sound of mirth was leaving and being replaced by panicked sobs.

He crumbled to the ground and Stephen rushed to catch him into his arms and gently lowered him. Tony was still awake. His eyes were wide open and unseeing. They were on their knees on the dirt floor, the cloak was moving around anxiously and Stephen was constantly calling out Tony's name.

As sudden as it started it stopped and Tony blinked his eyes open. "Why are you hugging me? Why are we on the floor?" he asked supremely confused.

"You… you went into some kind of trance?" Stephen said, bewildered. It didn't seem to be any medical reason for it.

Tony shook his head, possibly denying Stephen's words but an undercurrent of fear was in his eyes.

"We should probably head back. Everyone is probably freaking out," said Tony as he stood. Stephen stood as well.

"You can head to the Sanctum and we can try to figure out more about was is happening to you. It's probably more mystical in nature than science."

Tony's face scrunched up. "I hate magic," he muttered. The cloak puffed up as if offended. "But you have a point. I'd rather not be in that room again. Maybe we call over a few people and hold the meeting on my terms instead of being ganged up on. Can you do your little hocus pocus and take us to my workshop instead?" asked Tony, wriggling his fingers in the air as if to signify making a portal.

"I can only portal to places I have been to before or have a clear picture of," replied Stephen with a shrug of his arms.

Tony shifted. "What if I project the image to you?"

Stephen didn't really like the idea of others in his head, but he had done it before with Mordo and Wong. He nodded, knowing this was about building trust. Tony stepped in closer and placed two fingers on Stephen's temple. "I promise to be gentle," Tony said jokingly but Stephen could see his eyes were serious. Stephen nodded.

"It's not my first time," he quipped back and it helped relieve some of the tension as Tony smiled.

Stephen could feel the image come about in his mind slowly, as if a watercolor painting bleeding onto a canvas. It was jerky at first then suddenly the image bloomed before him. He nodded and then opened a portal.

**TBC**


	2. Chapter 2

Now that Tony was prepared for it he was more fascinated with it than scared. "Alright, instant Uber, I can dig that," he said before stepping forward of his own accord. He ended up in the Compound lab deep underground. He was the only one that had access to this particular level and although there were people who could break through with sheer strength Tony still felt safe there in his own space.

He could see Stephen walking around the area, looking at all his ongoing projects with a raised eyebrow and an interested gleam in his eyes, stopping particularly by the braces he had made for Rhodey and BARF.

He wouldn't normally allow a total stranger in his holiest of sanctums, but he trusted Stephen innately. The fight with Thanos had showed him many things, memories, futures, moments of time and Tony had retained all of that - still working through the snippets and flashes of scenes and letting them sink into his mind. Stephen had featured very predominantly.

In a way he _knew_ him. Lifetimes of him. But he didn't know this version, this iteration of Stephen, yet Tony was finding that he was looking forward to knowing him. The important thing he did know was that he could trust him.

Stephen didn't use cheap words when he spoke - he said what he meant, he's sarcastic and caring and so quick-witted that Tony actually had competition for the 'sass master' title.

"FRIDAY?" called Tony gently as he started opening up programs and videos.

"Yes, Boss?" she replied. He saw Stephen's mouth drop open a little. Tony always did like to impress others.

"Meet Dr. Stephen Strange, Houdini extraordinaire," said Tony as he gestured to Stephen. Stephen huffed as if exasperated, but it was good-natured.

"It's Sorcerer Supreme, Iron Can," he quipped back, purposely changing Tony's name.

"Nice to meet you, Dr. Strange," said FRIDAY.

"Nice to meet you as well, Friday. Are you a fully formed A.I.?," asked Stephen.

"I am," she giggled.

At the sound Stephen's eyes widened. "Remarkable," he said at a near whisper but Tony heard it.

"That she is," he said with a proud grin. "Now baby girl, how's it looking upstairs?" Tony continued almost gleefully.

"Utter chaos, Boss," replied FRIDAY as she opened up a video of the room where everyone had been gathered. The room looked even fuller but it was obvious that Fury was shouting about something, waving his phone in the air, the Guardians had taken to walking around and looked as if they had met up with Nebula, Pepper and Hope were still on their phones. The rest of the 'rogue' Avengers were huddled up, plotting something stupid no doubt.

"I stopped all outgoing signals aside from Boss Lady, Mr. Bear, and Ms. Hope," continued on to say FRIDAY quite proudly.

"Bear?" questioned Stephen, unable to help himself.

"It's what she calls Rhodey, since he's my Rhodey-bear," said Tony shamelessly.

Stephen just shook his head. "Would it be alright to bring Wong here?"

"Yeah, Wong's cool," replied Tony flippantly. "FRIDAY, scans active."

Stephen opened a portal into the atrium of the Sanctum Sanctorum. He poked his head through the portal and yelled Wong's name. Almost instantly another portal was opened in the atrium and out stepped Wong, his eyes steadfast and relieved.

"I see you're alive," commented Wong which translated to _"Thank goodness you're not dead"_

"Seems that way," Stephen quipped back. "Come over," he said, gesturing to the lab.

"And who will guard the Sanctum?"

"We'll leave the portal open," replied Stephen as he looked at Tony. He nodded.

Wong stepped through and Tony flicked his wrist toward the open portal. It stayed open and even shifted to look like it was another of Tony's screens. "Don't want to give out all your secrets now," he said.

Wong looked even more serious as he eyed the gauntlet gleaming on Tony's arm.

"So that's it," he commented.

"Yup," said Tony succinctly. "FRI, contact Pep and Rhodey. Tell them to keep it on the DL."

"Tony? Tony! Where are you?" Pepper's voice came through immediately, whispered and frantic.

"Tones, you can't keep disappearing in weird portals like that, man," said Rhodey a bit more calmly.

"I'm fine and I'm in a secure location. Would you guys like to join me before we get this show on the road?"

"Just tell us where," replied Pepper as she tried to school her expression.

"FRIDAY will lead you. FRI?"

"On it, Boss." She sent coded messages onto their phones.

Natasha had been eyeing them quite obviously, as had Maria Hill.

"Hope, can you please handle this for now. If I don't get something to eat the next person that talks to me is going to meet the business end of this Jimmy Choo," said Pepper as she stood up and left the room. Natasha made to trail after her but was waylaid by Bruce. Seemed that Rhodey had filled the other man in and ran to do interference. Rhodes didn't even bother to make an excuse as he used Bruce's distraction as well and followed Pepper out. When Tony had remade the Compound he had created a series of false doors, exclusive doors, and it was generally a bit of maze. Rhodey and Pepper had full access so all they needed to do was place their hands on the right areas and the doors would open. FRIDAY led them quite easily and soon enough they were standing right outside of the door.

As the door slid open Pepper tore through the room and hit Tony lightly on the shoulder then grabbed him into a tight hug. "Can you not do that again, please?" she pleaded.

"Sorry Pep."

Rhodey was standing with the bracers on and did the same thing except instead of hitting Tony lightly on the shoulder he slapped him on the back of the head. "Dude."

Tony laughed. "Yeah, I know."

It was all very domestic and Stephen actually found himself missing Christine and their friendly ribbing and interactions. He should probably find out what happened to her.

As this was happening he had quickly summarized what had happened to him. Wong looked serious for a moment but Stephen could tell he was glad to know he was alive. Stephen also stole a glance at Ms. Pott's ring finger and was selfishly relieved it was empty. He still wasn't aware of the going-ons in that relationship, but a bit of hope rose within him.

"Alright, I think we have raised Fury's blood pressure to 'skyrocket' level. Time to get this show on the road," said Tony as he waved his gauntleted hand and the back of the workshop looked completely unrecognizable. "FRI, lift restrictions, connect to main room."

"On it, Boss."

Pepper had gasped and Rhodes had whistled lowly when the room had transformed. Wong looked on disapprovingly as he crossed his arms over his chest, but Stephen was bemused. He had done as much when he came into his own powers.

"Stark, where are you?" hollered Fury as soon as they connected. The Guardians all rejoined the rest of them, their faces a bit more somber given the mood.

"Doesn't matter, Nick. What matters is clean-up and general crowd control. What do you have?"

"You've got some nerve, Stark," said Natasha as she sidled up next to Fury, her blonde hair looking dull and lifeless.

"You need to fix this," said Clint as his fist clenched open and closed repeatedly, the track of dried tears visible on his face.

"Tony, please, Bucky -," started to say Rogers before Tony cut them all off.

"Quiet! This is not getting us anywhere. FRIDAY has been feeding me a stream of information on what has gone on in the world. We have licked our wounds for now and will have time later to grieve for all we have lost, until then there are people out there that are scared and hurt and we need to help," he said passionately. It's what the ideal of the Avengers had been about. Heroes who rose up during a time of need to help. The world needed a show of good faith instead of having them withholding information and hiding away.

"You haven't lost anyone, Stark," spat out Clint and Carol frowned in the background. Before she could say anything Tony replied.

"Yes I have Barton, now shut it or I'll shut it for you," said Tony a bit threateningly. The loss of Vision was like a gaping wound. All that was left of JARVIS, of Vision, was the mind stone gleaming on the gauntlet.

Tony was surprised that it was Stephen that sidled up next to him in a show of solidarity.

"Gonna control me like Loki did? Perhaps it is better that Vision is gone so he can't see the monster behind sheep's clothing," continued to rant Clint. Thor frowned and took a large step forward toward the archer. Bruce shrunk in on himself.

"Have care on how you speak," Thor warned. Clint didn't look dissuaded.

"I'll do you one better," said Tony, anger in his eyes, "why don't you zip it until the adults finish talking?" A stone gleamed on his hand and Clint's mouth was literally a closed zipper. His eyes burned with hate as he tried to open his mouth. Gasps were heard all around and Tony could see the fear grow again. He sighed and waved his hand again. The zipper disappeared but he also forced Barton to sleep. He fell slowly, giving Natasha enough time to catch him. Wilson moved forward quickly to help move him to an empty couch.

"What was that, Stark?" asked Fury gruffly, but his eye showed how concerned he was.

"He's asleep, he's fine. Now let's get back to it. Those who have personal families and wish to check up on them can either go or make a call with FRI. The rest of us who have our affairs in order should start working on clearing the large debris and look for survivors. Volunteers only, don't want people claiming I mind-controlled them or something outrageous," Tony finished off a bit bitterly.

Most had already made arrangements with their families and had checked up on them hence Barton's outbursts. He had found out that Laura and two of his kids had died in a car accident when the _snap_ had happened. Only Lila survived and had been picked up by a couple who had witnessed the whole thing. When things had died down somewhat they had taken her to a police station and thankfully had her safely moved to her maternal grandparents.

"No, I think we need to discuss that new fashion accessory first before we go anywhere else," continued on Fury, speaking for everyone. Hill looked stoic as she stood as a silent sentry next to Fury. Natasha tried to pull up a mask to hide her fear at Tony's powers, but he had seen it anyway. Bruce and Thor stayed quietly in a corner while Hope continued to ignore all proceedings and seemed to be talking to someone in really rapid french. Wilson was tending to Barton and the Guardians were starting to look bored.

"Bring him back, Tony," cut in Rogers, stepping in front of Fury. Tony's face immediately fell into a scowl. It wasn't easy looking at Rogers and talking to him. His fist clenched so hard his nails dug into the skin. Stephen, making sure it would remain unseen from the others, gently grabbed Tony's hand. Tony's glare lessened and he just looked tired.

"We don't have time for this," he replied with instead of the vitriol that had bubbled in his chest.

"Make time," commanded Rogers as he crossed his arms over his chest to look intimidating. Tony gently removed his hand from Stephen's hold and crossed his own arms over his chest, making sure the gauntlet was quite obvious.

"No," Tony replied sternly.

"Goddammit, Tony! It's your fault, now bring him back!" Rogers pleaded, tears gathering in his eyes.

It was and it wasn't Tony's fault.

They had been fighting Thanos' forces. At times they seemed infinite and their own numbers kept dwindling. At one point of the fight Tony had gotten ahold of the Soul Stone. He hastily tried to use it's power even while unimaginable pain shot through him. A few souls had escaped the Stone, coalescing around where they had died. The fight was still on Wakandan soil and Barnes came out of the Stone. Tony had no idea what was going on through his head, but Barnes was suddenly there at his side, jumping straight back into the fray. Rogers had caught sight of him and let out a relieved sigh. The fight got more intense as Thanos raged, angry that Tony had managed to get a stone from him.

A shot of pure power from the Power Stone had fired out of the glove, aimed straight at Tony. Barnes had shouted his name, but it was too late for Tony to move. Barnes lept and shoved Tony out of the way, effectively taking the hit himself. A sort of hush fell over the group before Thanos was on the move again, taunting and playing with them.

Tony had rushed to Barnes' side. He was alive but barely.

"_I know this don't make it right, but I'm happy I got to save a Stark instead of killing them today," coughed out Barnes as Tony tried to assess the damage and figure out how to save him._

"_Please don't," said Tony, not really sure what he wanted to stop Barnes from doing._

"_I'm sorry about your parents, I really am. Can you tell Stevie that I'm sorry to him too?" Tony had nodded quickly, unable to comprehend the flood of emotions that filled him._

"_I forgive you," he had said. And until that moment he didn't know he had. He did forgive Barnes and he meant every word._

_Barnes let out a small, relieved smile and closed his eyes._

_Tony had rejoined the fight with renewed fervor._

Tony ignored Roger's watery-blue eyes and looked back at Fury. "Fine, if you won't help then I guess I have to do everything myself." Fury scowled. "FRI, call an emergency U.N. meeting, also send up a few legionnaires and get those satellites working." FRIDAY acquiesced and got to work.

"Fur Ball, you think you could help out with the rebuilding?" Tony asked Rocket. They all leapt to attention.

"Am I sure? This primitive tech is hardly a challenge," he scoffed. He knew he was being asked and anything was better than sitting here.

Quill cut in. "You're not going alone. Groot and…" he stopped, looked a bit dismayed and froze.

"I'll go with too," said Hope as she stood from her seat.

"Uh sure?" said Quill, confused.

"Hope Van Dyne - the Wasp, I know tech and am always willing to learn more," she said with a smile as she stuck out her hand at Quill who numbly shook it. She then turned to Rocket and Groot. "Ready?"

They nodded and started to leave. "The 'Best Pilot' award goes to me, Quill," said Rocket leaving quickly so Quill would not have anything to say.

"She seemed nice," said Mantis softly and Drax just huffed and sat on the couch.

"Everyone else, I have done a scan of certain areas that I felt would be affected the most," said Tony as several screens turned on near each individual. "Your mission, if you choose to accept it," he started to say before Pepper huffed out a laugh and Stephen groaned in exasperation. Tony ignored them both as he continued, "is to go to these affected areas, contact the local law enforcement and liaise with them on how to best be of use. More than likely you are going to be lifting heavy objects and finding a lot of people." - The 'dead and alive' was left unsaid.

They all looked at their screens idly. Only the remaining Guardians made to move along with Thor, Bruce and Carol.

"You can make contact through FRIDAY if need be and thanks," finished off Tony. It didn't seem like any of the former-SHIELD were moving or any of the rogue Avengers.

"Stark, what are you planning?" inquired Fury softly.

"I'm just trying to save the world, Nick, one person at a time," he said before turning off the screen.

_**TBC**_


	3. Chapter 3

"Boss, Flag Man is trying to reach you," said FRIDAY.

"Mute all attempts unless life threatening."

"Affirmative," she replied with gusto.

"Do I have an affected area?" asked Rhodey with a smile.

"Yeah, it's called the US Government."

Rhodey's smile fell. "Damn - well at least they don't have me dressed as another flag man now." They shared a laugh.

"You know I still need to get you an updated suit. May paint 'War Machine Roxxx" with three 'x's for giggles," said Tony shooting exaggerated kissy-faces at Rhodey.

"Don't you dare," threatened Rhodes playfully. "Welp, time to appease the masses."

Tony shrugged. "Pretty much." Rhodey went up to Tony and hugged him tightly. He turned to Pepper and pulled her into a one-armed hug as well.

"Don't know much about you except that you saved Tony's life. Thanks for returning this thorn in my side," said Rhodey as he stuck out his hand for Stephen to shake. "James Rhodes."

Stephen took his hand. "Dr. Stephen Strange, and this is Wong," replied Stephen gesturing to the other sorcerer. Rhodey nodded to the other man.

"Wong? Just 'Wong'? Like 'Beyonce'?" questioned Rhodey. Wong preened.

"Exactly like Beyonce," replied the shorter sorcerer.

Stephen looked at him aghast, as if he had never seen Wong make a joke before. Rhodey and Tony laughed.

"Alright, I best be off then," said Rhodey with a two-fingered salute as he walked toward the door. "See you, Pepper."

"Goodbye, James."

"Okay Pep, you have the hardest job of all," Tony said as he came over. Pepper looked bemused. "You have to make sure SI is alright. Employees, stocks, property, inventory - the works."

Pepper's face looked serious. "I've already been on it. I'll be stealing Happy - can't be too careful." Tony's face looked relieved. He walked closer to her and hugged her tightly. He whispered something in her ear that had tears forming in her eyes as she held him back just as tightly.

"Stay safe and call me or contact FRI if you need anything at all," said Tony as he backed out of her space. She cleared her face of any previous emotion. "You got an armor ready for me too?" she asked lightly.

Normally Tony would have a better poker face than what he was sporting right now, but the answer was clear as day on his face.

"Oh no, no no no," said Pepper, backing away slowly.

"You handled it pretty well back in Malibu, I call this one 'Rescue'," Tony amended quickly. "But, I also got your kind of armor too." At this Pepper looked intrigued.

"FRI," Tony prompted. A panel slid open on one of the walls. Encased was a sharp pant business suit complete with accessories. "Think we can meet halfway and you could wear this?" asked Tony as they both approached the wall. The suit was made from bulletproof material and the watch would be a one time use Iron Man gauntlet. The rest of the outfit had other special features and a new bluetooth device was there as well, with direct access to FRIDAY and JOCASTA.

"Oh, Tony," Pepper sighed as she took in the personalized armor in front of her. "Yes, I'll wear it."

Tony's grin was infectious as he took the thing down and passed it to Pepper. "FRI, contact Hap and have him meet Pep back here. He should be back from taking the Spider kid home."

"I can bring him if you like," cut in Stephen who had used this time to argue quietly with Wong regarding the whole pop culture thing. Tony quirked an eyebrow.

"Sure. FRIDAY, contact Happy," said Tony. They could all hear the phone ring.

"I will never do that again," complained Happy as soon as the line connected.

"What? Take the Spiderling home?"

"No, have him take ME home," Happy grumped. "Do you know how much traffic there is? How much wreckage? Couldn't even make it a few blocks without having to pull over. That menace then grabbed me and we swung on his web all the way to his aunts," Happy continued to complain. "My heart is not cut out for that."

Everyone in the room had a bemused look on their faces. "Alright fair enough. Where are you now?"

"Trying to figure out a way to get back without losing my lunch."

Tony sniggered. "Alright, but where?"

"A block south of the kids place."

Tony nodded to himself and walked over to Stephen and lifted his hand. "May I?" Both Wong and Pepper had surprised looks on their faces but for different reasons.

Stephen voiced his consent and Tony transferred the image of the street to him. Stephen immediately opened a portal. Pepper let out a gasp and Wong sighed as they all saw Happy's back.

Tony waived at FRIDAY to cut the call. "Turn around, Hap." The other man quickly turned and was immediately in a boxing was glad to see his skills had not gotten rusty.

"No way," said the other man, part disbelieving, part disconcerted.

"I promise it doesn't hurt - not even a tingle," joked Tony as he leaned over and stretched out his arm through the portal. Happy looked at it, steeled himself, and walked straight through, ignoring Tony's helping hand.

"Never a dull moment," he commented as he made it into the workshop.

"Hello Happy, think you can accompany me to work on some SI business?" asked Pepper. Happy nodded.

"Of course."

"Doctor Strange, would you be able to take me to my office at SI?" asked Pepper calmly.

"Certainly," replied the sorcerer. He nodded to Tony and Tony once again transferred an image of Pepper's office into his mind.

"He's better than a taxi, right?" jokingly said Tony as Pepper and Happy stepped through the portal.

"Take care of yourself, Tony," said Pepper as the portal almost finished closing.

Tony took out the engagement ring from his pocket, tossed it in the air and then pocketed all in one smooth motion. His face had a look a resignation on it but it was quickly hidden away.

"Alright, now that that is taken care of it seems we have a few other things to look forward to."

"Namely that gauntlet," cut in Wong.

"What happened, Tony?" asked Stephen. They all pulled over a chair and Tony retold the story.

Tony reiterated to Stephen and Wong all they had missed during the final confrontation with Thanos. After the fight on Titan Tony and Nebula were the only ones left. They took Quill's ship, _The Milano_, and flew straight back to Earth after Nebula contacted Rocket for his location. They ended up in Wakanda in the middle of another battlefield. Dozens of Wakandans littered the ground along with the dead alien army. Nebula joined the fight and Tony finally got in touch with FRIDAY and Pepper. One was more happy to hear from him than another. Even now Tony cringed at Pepper's outrage. Tony tasked FRIDAY to send him a new batch of nanites and he tried to coordinate with the Rogues regarding the situation. It was a clusterfuck. They were all spread too thin and no one had eyes on Thanos. No one knew how he looked aside from Thor and Tony.

Thanos stood there admiring the destruction around him. Tony could see Vision's broken body sagged against a tree, his eyes dead. The last remnant of JARVIS _dead_. No matter how much it pained him to see another person under his care perished he had to hold on to his anger and sadness and think clearly.

He contacted Thor and the remaining fighters instead and essentially sent a beacon of his location. Thor arrived almost immediately, lightning running up and down his arms, his eyes glowing with unnatural power.

Rogers, Romanoff, Bruce, a few Wakandans, Nebula, Rhodey and a Raccoon were all the back-up he got.

They fought. If Thanos with a few stones was a powerhouse, one with all 6 was likened to an actual God. Tony was surprised they had all managed to survive by the end of it.

They fought with tactics - fought with primal rage - fought to their last breath.

Tony had gotten his hand on the Soul Stone though he really couldn't recall how it happened. There was so much noise, and pain and blood and he couldn't focus. He used the Soul Stone by instinct alone.

The battlefield suddenly got a whole lot fuller.

People that had been snapped away into dust came back into being. Many were in awe at seeing their comrades again.

Wilson, Barnes, a tree, T'Challa, & Maximoff

They took a moment to assess what had happened and immediately joined the fray. Wilson took to the air along with War Machine. Maximoff raged at the loss of Vision. The Racoon immediately hugged the tree and they rejoined the fight now that Thanos' forces had located them, T'Challa briefly reunited with his people before he too started to fight back in earnest, and Barnes sacrificed himself for Tony as Thanos shot a beam of pure power from the Power stone.

In a weird twist of fate Tony got his hands on the gauntlet again. He clawed his way back to Thanos. Thanos had let him get in close - desperate to get the Soul Stone back, but the Titan was also busy trying to fight back the never-ending onslaught from Tony's side. They had managed to stop the Titan from snapping his fingers again and during that scuffle Tony literally stole the rest of the Stones from the gauntlet and made slots for them on his own Iron Man gauntlet using the nanites.

All in all it was weirdly simple.

The power had raged through him so much that Thanos was able to get a good hit on him and threw him into a tree. Without much thought Tony made eye contact with Thanos and quickly snapped his fingers, hoping with everything he had that he had done the right thing, used the Stones like Thanos had.

There was no time to experiment - it was now or never.

Just like that Thanos' forces were extinguished from reality. Thor managed to get his ax into Thanos' chest, making the Titan fall to his knees.

"This is for Gamora, and for me," said Nebula before she used her full strength and literally cut off the Titan's head before he could say anything else.

It was over.

**TBC**


	4. Chapter 4

Notes:

Note that this is the final chapter in the story.

"Chapter 5 Extra Scenes" is exactly as the name implies.

This chapter is how I wanted to wrap up the story, but I figured to add the last bit regarding the state of the Earth/Universe for those interested.

This story was mainly to be about Stephen and Tony

Thanks again to everyone who stayed with me through this long process!

As always, kudos and especially comments are appreciated =D

Chapter Text

Stephen and Wong remained silent as they thought over everything that happened while Tony puttered around the workshop as he checked on the status of a few projects. The future that Tony had made was one of the ones Stephen recalled seeing with the Time Stone. He hadn't lied to Tony that this future, or rather present, was the best outcome they could have hoped for. It was better as a _collective_ and not so much for specific individuals. A lot of people suffered personal losses and nothing was going to bring them back.

Many died during the _Snap _instead of being 'dusted'. Those people were not going to come back no matter how much people wished it so. That was the case with Vision, Barton's family, Barnes, and Gamora - they were dead. Regardless of the power Tony wielded, he still couldn't bring back the deceased. And even if he could, it was highly advisable that he didn't. The Universe, the _Multiverse_ was all about balance and as Sorcerer Supreme it was one of the jobs that Stephen strives to maintain and protect. He could tell that Tony knew that and Stephen did not envy the backlash he might get from the public once it was released that Tony had all this power in his literal hand and did nothing with it.

Wong excused himself, stating he needed to go look over the New York Sanctum and inform the rest of the Sorcerers across the globe about current events, pointedly looking at Stephen and not so subtly moving his head toward Tony. A portal opened and Wong stepped through, giving Tony his number in case they needed to reach him.

As soon as Wong left Tony stopped pacing and sat down heavily on a futon Stephen hadn't even realized was there. It was tucked away in a darkened area of the lab. Tony released a heavy sigh as he looked at the Iron Man gauntlet full of powerful, glittering jewels. Stephen knew that Tony wanted to talk to him, probably as much as Stephen did. He took off the Cloak of Levitation and let it wander around the room curiously while stepping toward the futon, making sure to sit as close to Tony as possible, purposely making their thighs brush against each other.

"I'm sure you have questions," Tony sighed out, leaning back onto the futon, his gaze aimlessly looking at the ceiling. "I have to release a press conference soon too. The _world_ has questions," Tony muttered a bit darkly, the stress weighing heavy on his shoulders. By no means did Stephen envy him.

"I do," Stephen agreed lightly, "but probably not the ones you are thinking."

Tony huffed out a light laugh, "Always so mysterious."

Stephen smiled. "Really? Always?"

Tony opened to say something snarky perhaps but then his eyes caught the green Time Stone on his hand and shook his head of the thoughts that suddenly invaded his mind. "Yeah, always," he replied with instead, sounding more tired than ever.

Stephen frowned. "How are you doing? Have you even gone to medical?" Stephen worriedly asked. "I know I asked you this already, but you never said." He took Tony's hand with his own, the one devoid of the gauntlet, and took his pulse. Tony's eyes lingered on their entwined hands, flexing his fingers and purposely catching onto one of Stephen's. Stephen swallowed nervously as he flexed his fingers more, making sure they were holding hands instead with their fingers entwined.

"FRIDAY ran a quick diagnostic scan. I'm mostly alright," answered Tony as his free hand waved the question away. "I don't really know what to do. I think that's the hard part now. It's all well and good to get rid of Thanos, get rid of the threat that's been haunting my nightmares for over eight years now, but I honestly never gave thought to what would happen afterwards. I honestly…" Tony trailed off, his voice tapered into a whisper.

"You what?" prompted Stephen softly, squeezing Tony's hand gently in order to get the brunet to look him in the eyes.

Tony regained some courage as he looked at Stephen. "I honestly expected to die during this final fight. I have been fighting and worrying and planning for Thanos and I have always felt that I wasn't going to live to see the end of it. I was ready to make that sacrifice if I needed to. There are so many people I want to protect that I would not have cared if I died if they got to live."

Tony's raw emotions encompassed his eyes and Stephen felt as if his heart clenched tightly in his chest. This was such an intimate moment between them that Stephen felt his mouth go dry. "I'm glad you lived," Stephen managed the words. Tony hadn't turned toward him but Stephen could feel the weight of his gaze. "A lot of people still need you," continued on to say the sorcerer. The silence from Tony was thick with tension. Stephen gathered his thoughts and his courage. "I need you too." At that Tony exhaled long and hard, burying his face into his bare hand, taking his hand from Stephen's own, as he leaned over his legs. "I'm sorry," whispered Stephen. He had pushed too fast and too hard. He messed up. He started to stand, feeling like he should just go before he ruined anything else.

"Wait," called Tony, his bare hand extending toward Stephen, grasping his wrist and forcing the sorcerer to stay seated. "I just...it was just so similar."

Stephen swallowed harshly. "What do you mean?"

"This," Tony said as he gestured angrily between them, his arm making cutting motions between their bodies, "this conversation...you.._ him _.. It's hard to keep track of what's happened, what will happen, what _may _happen. I feel like my head's about to explode at any moment."

That was something Stephen understood. He had practice with the Time stone, learned exercises to help compartmentalize the use of the stone and all the visions he would see. Even now he was working on clearing his head of all the futures he had glimpsed while on Titan. He grasped Tony's hand and squeezed as tightly as his own hand allowed, giving Tony something to ground himself with. He turned to look at the brunet. Tony's eyes were filled with so much pain and confusion that Stephen had a hard time matching him with the earlier genius who was currently in charge of the Avengers and took hold of the chaos of the world. That previous Tony was strong and assured, confident that the next steps he took were correct and right. The Tony currently in front of him was a little broken, too hurt and vulnerable that Stephen felt like he was looking at a broken mirror version of Tony. But that wasn't the case. This Tony was as real as the other and Stephen's heart clenched in his chest.

"Let me help you," softly said Stephen, promising himself that not only was he going to help Tony deal with the after effects of the Time stone but that he would try to bring a semblance of peace to his psyche and life. He wasn't a therapist by any means, but studying the mystic arts had led Stephen to all sorts of knowledge and practices. He also had a feeling that Tony would be adverse from seeking help from a stranger - he knew if it was the other way around he would be against spilling his thoughts and feelings to a stranger as well.

Tony gave a self-depreciating scoff. "Can I actually be helped, doc?" he asked, his brown eyes wide and worried.

"If you let yourself," simply replied Stephen. One can never be helped if they didn't allow themselves to accept that help, he had learned that first hand after his disastrous fight with Christine before he found the mystic arts. Tony stared at him, his mind probably racing through all sorts of scenarios and outcomes. He gave out a wry smile.

"Alright, you win," answered Tony, a flower of hope blossoming slowly in his chest. "How do we do this?" Stephen smiled in response.

"First we should get some rest, clean up, and food. I don't know about you, but I could go for a cheeseburger," Stephen answered as he stood up and the cloak immediately came and settled onto his shoulders.

Tony gaped at him in surprise and then just started laughing. At first it was with humor, but the longer it went on the more desperate it sounded, more forced as if he was choking on the sound, until he was doubled over his knees with tears flowing down his face. Stephen had no idea what had just happened. He had probably stepped on a loaded landmine without knowing. He kneeled on the ground immediately in front of Tony and slowly embraced the brunet.

Tony's cries tapered off almost as quick as they came. The brunet leaned his forehead against Stephen's shoulder, resting there and letting Stephen's heartbeat calm him down. He was suddenly very tired. He had a feeling that the gauntlet was draining him in some way and the day was just so very long. He was just _done _with the day. A cheeseburger, a shower, and sleep seemed like the most wonderful plan of action. "Yeah, let's do that," choked out Tony. Stephen's hold around him tightened for a moment then he let go and stood back up.

"Are you alright?" asked Stephen a bit hesitantly. He wasn't sure why the mention of _cheeseburgers _of all things had made the brunet act in such a way and he was a bit disconcerted. Tony rose and stretched, arms reaching to the ceiling.

"Yeah," Tony lied, "Let's go back to my place. I don't fancy visiting Hogwarts again so soon." Stephen let him get away with his non-answer and nodded in agreement. Wong could take care of the Sanctum for the moment.

Without waiting or offering Stephen an image of where to portal them, Tony waved his hand and they were immediately teleported to his mansion in New York, the Space stone gleaming. He had secretly been fixing it back up since he had sold Stark Tower, needing a new place of residence. He originally planned on moving back to California since his Malibu mansion was almost always done with repairs, but since he had the Compound in New York he didn't feel comfortable leaving just yet. The mansion was definitely not his first choice, but it would take a while for him to choose a new home.

"Sorry," offhandedly offered Tony, now realizing that he should have asked Stephen if he was alright with him teleporting them, but the stone had seemed to almost instinctively act on his thoughts and desires. Stephen felt the knots in his stomach untie at the apology. He had been the same when he first came into his powers, he just had to have patience with Tony.

"Here, let me show you where you can get cleaned up and then we can eat. FRIDAY is already ensconced in the mansion so feel free to ask her for anything or directions to get around. Let's meet in the kitchen in a few," rattled off Tony as he led the sorcerer up a staircase and down a few hallways. Another stone glowed on Tony's hand. "There should be a change of clothes for you ready," said the brunet before turning to head to his own room.

Before the Iron Man pilot could run away from him Stephen reached out and grabbed him by the wrist, halting his movement. "Thank you, Tony," Stephen offered genuinely. "I know there's a lot going on and maybe you are having some kind of power influxes, but I can also conjure and take care of myself. I don't want you to strain yourself unnecessarily." Tony looked at him like he was something new and smiled a little bashfully to himself. It was the most endearing look Stephen had ever seen on him.

"Sorry, habit I guess," Tony offered. When Stephen just looked at him he continued a bit self-consciously. "I'm used to providing for people all the time and almost expected to do it. It's nice to know someone who can take care of themselves is all," was Tony's explanation. Stephen didn't have to be a genius to know that Tony was referring to the old Avengers team.

"It's alright," Stephen murmured, still caught up on Tony's bashful look. He coughed into his fist and let go of the brunet. "I'll see you in a moment," Stephen said as he fled into the room in front of him.

Tony looked at him, a bit bemused and in slightly higher spirits and made his way to his own room.

When Stephen made it to the kitchen with FRIDAY's help he was pleasantly surprised to see Tony already there, cheeseburgers, fries, and soda on the table. "Should I even ask?" quipped Stephen as he made his way to a chair. The clothes that Tony had provided were comfortable yet fashionable and seemed like modern day wear for a sorcerer. Stephen wondered how the design came about but he didn't want to push Tony too much. Besides, in the grand scheme of things it didn't really matter. The cloak joined them but seemed content to just float around the space around them.

"Probably not," answered Tony as he bit into his own burger, the moans coming out his mouth almost obscene. Stephen could feel his face flush lightly. He hadn't forgotten just how good Tony and he could be, the possible futures flashing through his mind briefly.

After they ate their meal in silence they regrouped to the living room that had some comfortable and modern couches. It seemed as if Tony was adamant at renovating and modernizing his old family home.

"So, we should probably get down to it. I need to know what are all the problems you have currently regarding the gauntlet and the past few...hours? And we can prioritize from there," Stephen stated bluntly. Tony was not sure he wanted to say anything but he knew he had to and Stephen was probably the most equipped to answer his questions and help. He's the only other human who had a stone, and Vision was gone but Tony doubted Vision knew all that much about the Mind stone as the android was a little more fixated on fitting in and his fleeting romance with Maximoff.

They were sitting next to each other again, reminiscent of earlier and Tony breathed in deeply and closed his eyes, trying to center himself. "I feel like the stones are draining my energy, I have been losing moments of consciousness, they sometimes act on the behalf of my subconscious, and I am having trouble focusing in the present - the possible futures keep flashing through my head and muddling my thoughts," he answered in a rush, hoping to just get all his problems _out there _.

Stephen thought for a moment, then nodded to himself. "I see," he replied as he frowned deep in thought again. Tony anxiously looked at him. "I think we should help you compartmentalize the Time stone's effects first. They seem to prevent you from being able to focus and think clearly and it might also help with the time-lapses in consciousness."

Tony didn't know what course of action was better so he deferred to Stephen's experience. He nodded then verbalized his agreement. "Alright, and how do we do that?"

Stephen smiled softly at him and placed his slightly shaking hands against Tony's temples. "Don't worry, it's not too difficult. You're a genius, I'm sure you can pick it up easily enough," Stephen said with good humor, hoping to bolster Tony's self-confidence. It was an important step in wrangling ones own mind.

"You're not going in my head, are you?" Tony asked, a little shaken. Stephen frowned.

"I would never do that to you, especially without your permission," Stephen answered, removing his hands from Tony's head. "Although it might be easier," he commented off-handedly. Tony frowned at him, but shook himself out of whatever thoughts he was having.

"Walk me through it then," he said sternly, his voice rife with command. Stephen smiled again, this kind of attitude was perfect.

They went through the exercises and as Stephen thought, Tony had been able to pick up on them almost immediately and with minimal question to his methods. They went through it for close to an hour before Tony felt his mind clear up tremendously, finally able to focus and think as he was used to. He hadn't realized just how muddled his mind had been before.

Stephen conjured some tea and offered Tony a cup. "You did splendidly," he praised. Tony seemed to soak up the words as he reached over and took the cup in hand, letting the warmth of the tea seep into his bare hand, the porcelain sounding weird against the gauntlet.

"I feel much better, really," Tony said after taking a small sip. "What's next?" he asked, eager to get all the troubles with the gauntlet squared away so he could focus on the problems of the planet.

"Drink you tea. Take a short break and let your mind heal and repair itself a bit. While you do that I will be looking into the power of the gauntlet and how it works with your energy sources."

Tony frowned, but gave in to Stephen. The sorcerer hadn't steered him wrong yet. He drank the rest of his tea and focused his eyes to the unlit fireplace. Once he thought his tea was empty, the cup seemed to refill itself. Tony frowned. He didn't really care much for tea, but it had been soothing. He placed the cup on the coffee table in front of him and leaned back into the couch, tilted his head back and closed his eyes. Stephen did tell him to relax and he was so tired.

Stephen drank his own tea and placed the cup on the table as well. The compartmentalization part was done for now. He was a bit worried about the other problems that Tony had mentioned but didn't want to alarm the billionaire. Instead he took it upon himself to find the problem and hopefully a solution. While Tony was relaxing Stephen moved his fingers and hands in several different ways and focused the power in his eyes. It was a mild spell, but one that was fairly useful. It allowed the wielder to be able to see a variation of ley lines. They were more like energy sources. Unfortunately, with this being a minor spell, it didn't exactly give the specifics of the energy. Once he got his eyes to focus on the gauntlet he untangled the bundle of energy threads per stone and realized that they all tied up and met into one string that was tied around Tony's wrist and moved straight up his arm, through his heart and into his brain. At the heart and brain points there seemed to be a bundle of clustered energy, although the one in the brain seemed smaller than the heart, no doubt mildly fixed from the earlier exercise. He took in a deep breath and focused more, pouring his own energy into the spell and his eyes. The one in the heart look like it was flared red and it was pulsing. The one in the brain was a cool blue and it seemed to have been soothed, almost like it _should _be there. He worked away Tony's natural body energies and focused on the ones brought about from the stones. Sure enough it looked as if the stones were inherently tied to Tony. He blinked out the magic, focusing his mind and eyes to the the 'normal world'.

Tony was staring at him intently, his eyes wide and filled with wonder. "That was new," he chimed in once Stephen regained his bearings.

"What do you mean?" asked the sorcerer as he tried to collect his thoughts.

"Your eyes turned gold," said Tony as he continued to stare at him. "What were you doing?"

Stephen answered as best he could regarding the spell and viewing energy lines and Tony nodded along. "I admit I expected you to detest magic and not believe half the things I say," Stephen commented once he was done with his explanation.

Tony lifted his gauntlet covered hand and wriggled his fingers. "I don't necessarily detest magic but now that I have this thing it'd be a little stupid of me to just ignore or not believe things simply because I didn't understand them before."

Stephen let out a wry smile, thinking back to when he was first introduced to magic. As a man of science, same as Tony, he had been skeptical up until the Ancient One had thrust him through multiple dimensions. Tony, on the other hand, had accepted much quicker than he had. Then again, the man had been at the nexus of many unexplainable things already and had the experience of magic first hand, first with Loki and his invasion of New York and then with Maximoff.

"That's quite wise of you," genuinely commented Stephen. "Regardless I think we can work on untangling the gauntlet threads that are close to your heart. I didn't want to ask before in case you thought I meant to take it from you, but can you remove the gauntlet?"

Tony eyed Stephen but it was only for a moment. He removed the gauntlet and hastily threw it into an empty corner. Before Stephen could utter a single word the gauntlet flew immediately back to Tony, snugly fitting back onto his hand. Tony's hand was a different color from the rest of his body, almost darker, as if the gauntlet was tanning his hand, or burning it.

Stephen swallowed, but said nothing. Tony met his gaze head on, eyes hard and almost angry. The gauntlet seeped into his skin, infinity stones and all. Stephen's eyes flared open in surprise, his mouth dropping open at the sheer incredulity of what he just witnessed.

He regained his senses and coughed harshly into a fist. "I see," were the only words he could mutter.

It seemed as if all the energy Tony had managed to regain had now escaped out of him. He sank into the couch once again, spent.

His hand was now free of the gauntlet, but his body wasn't. He could feel the stones pulsing inside him, their boundless energy almost calling out to him. He tightened his mental control as Stephen taught him and managed to rein in their power. He brought up his hand and actually stared at it. He hadn't had a free moment to himself aside from the shower, but at that time he was more focused on relaxing than exploring this new burden he carried. His hand looked like how he felt. It was shaking slightly, the fingers were nicked with scars all over from all his engineering projects, and his nails were normally trimmed. What was different was the color. Whenever he used the gauntlet he could feel it warm up and it seemed to sear lightly onto his skin. He wondered if it was because he was human - maybe if he had been a more resilient being he could wield it without any negative effects, like Thanos had. It didn't matter though. He was stuck with this thing until he could actually have more than a few hours to experiment with it. He needed to get the world in good working order, deal with all the damage and dead before he could sequester himself in his lab.

"I hate to rush this along, doc," started to say Tony, "but I'm going to have to go out and face the world soon. Do you think going through this will take much longer?"

Stephen frowned at him. "This is not something to be rushed," he mildly chided, "but I understand your concerns. For now, with your permission, I can cast a slight barrier against the stones' energy that is clustered around your heart. The one in your brain seems to be acting as it should and I wouldn't want to mess too closely to it since you started your compartmentalization techniques."

Tony thought for a moment but then decided to defer to Stephen once again. "Alright Dumbledore, do your thing. Later we can work on the rest," said Tony with a smile. He hadn't felt this level of hope or optimism in a while. It was a pleasant change from all the darkness and grief that had followed him around for years.

Stephen's nose scrunched up cutely at the nickname, already missing when Tony called him 'doc', though he would prefer if the billionaire would call him by his _actual _name. "Alright," he smoothly said. "Lay on the ground, it will be easier."

Tony's eyebrow rose but did as directed. Stephen also got off the couch and straddled the billionaire's waist, sitting on his lap as if it was a normal occurrence.

"Not that I am opposed to this, seeing as if I've had a few future glimpses of this exact position in my bed, but what are you doing?" Tony said, his tone was teasing and playful, but also curious.

Stephen coughed into his fist, his pale cheeks turned pink. He had tried not to think about it, think about how he was practically sitting on Tony's waist so intimately. This really was the best position for this, but that didn't make it any less embarrassing. "This is the best way to brace ourselves for the barrier spell, especially since it's in your heart."

Tony wriggled under him, loving the blush on Stephen's cheeks. "I see," he intoned, although he was just pretending to be serious. When was the last time he had teased and played around like this? His mind couldn't even conjure a single moment. He was rather enjoying this.

"Stop that," mildly chided Stephen, no heat in his words. His eyes grew dark as he felt Tony move under him again, rolling his hips against him. Stephen tried to glare but when Tony rolled his hips again he closed his eyes, taking pleasure in the sensations. He leaned his whole body over Tony, grasping the brunet's wrists and pinning them and his body solidly against the floor.

"Kinky," mumbled Tony, his eyes lidded and dark as he stared at Stephen, arousal heavy within his body. He knew he was playing with fire, knew that this was too fast, too soon, not the right time - all that he knew, but he couldn't stop himself. He wanted this, had been wanting this. When he had broken it off with Pepper he had done it knowing that this was waiting for him - it was selfish but it was also for Pepper. She deserved much more than he could give her. He didn't think he used the gauntlet for nefarious purposes, but he had seen a bit of Pepper's future. He saw her dressed in white, her heels tall and thin and Tony's feet had winced in sympathy, but she was happy, her belly swelled with a child and standing next to her at the altar had been Happy Hogan, his face split in a wide smile, eyes filled with tears of happiness as they said their vows and Tony wanted to give them that, give them that opportunity. He had hinted to them both, giving them each his unconditional blessing. It was up to them to see if that was the direction they wanted to move in. For Tony he had this - had Doctor Stephen Strange, Sorcerer Supreme. As he looked into Stephen's eyes he felt his feelings grow, attachment already there as only life-altering experiences could do, and he allowed himself to fall further, let his heart actually feel what it wanted. He let out a small gasp as his heart thudded harshly in his chest. It was a bit overwhelming and Stephen's gaze looked filled with so much promise. Tony lifted his chin up slightly and Stephen didn't disappoint.

Stephen stared deeply into Tony's eyes and he could almost feel a fissure of energy around his body the more he looked at him. Tony lifted his chin and Stephen took that as the invitation it was. He leaned down and kissed him, pouring as much of himself into the kiss as he dared. It started soft and sweet then grew to desperate and messy as they clung to one another. They had both needed this, needed this closeness to sooth the hard, jagged edges of what they had experienced. It wasn't enough, but it was definitely a start. They separated reluctantly as they caught their breaths.

"We should…" trailed off Stephen as he leaned down and took another kiss from those soft, pliant lips.

Tony chucked into his mouth. He reined in his joy and started to think a little more clearly. "We actually should," he said. He placed a swift peck against the side of Stephen's lips. "Come on, Stephen, we should finish up this kinky ritual. Unfortunately we have the world to deal with after this."

Stephen incredulously stared down at Tony. "What is it?" asked Tony, a bit concerned when Stephen hadn't answered him.

"You called me Stephen," said the sorcerer in awe. Tony's eyebrow rose.

"It's your name," he deadpanned.

Stephen shook his head lightly. "It's the first time," he said, still somewhat in awe. He loved the sound of his name coming out of Tony's mouth.

Tony looked at him in mild surprise, "Well, okay," he said, at a loss for words. "I can call you something else if you'd prefer, Doctor."

A sizzle of warmth shot through Stephen's brain and straight to his groin. He let out a low groan.

Tony stared up at him in pleased surprise. "What now?" he questioned. When Stephen didn't answer Tony thought through what he had said earlier. The word _doctor _filtered through his mind. It was as if a light bulb went on in his mind. Did his little magician have a doctor-kink? This was turning out to be much more fun than he ever imagined. He had so many _ideas _for the future.

Unfortunately they did not have the time to explore all those ideas at the moment. Normally he would rush and just use the Time stone, but figured he should learn more about it before messing with something as delicate as time. "Alright...alright…" he forced himself to say, "take a look at my ley lines or whatever, Houdini. We will have more time to deal with this later," said Tony as he punctuated his sentence by rolling his hips against Stephen's hardened erection. The sorcerer let out a garbled noise that had Tony almost throwing all caution to the wind, but he reined in the impulse. Stephen had no right being too damn distracting and desirable.

"Ah, yes, of course," Stephen forced out. He sat up, aware at his position against Tony's lap, but concentrated nonetheless. He repeated the spell from earlier and focused into Tony's heart, ready to place the barrier. His brow scrunched in confusion. The energy string and bundle at the heart was a cool blue, just like the one in Tony's brain. It wasn't pulsing dangerously and seemed even calmer than the one in his head. He retreated back to Tony and looked at the genius, unsure how to phrase his new discovery.

"What is it?" asked Tony a bit worried.

"Nothing, but that's the problem," replied Stephen.

"No riddles," groused Tony.

Stephen shook his head lightly. "I don't mean it to come out that way. It's just that it looks like it's fixed, whatever was happening around your heart has calmed down." Tony looked confused and a bit disturbed, but then his eyes lit up with an epiphany then he started laughing.

Stephen looked at him in confusion. "Ah, so that's what happened," Tony said, a smile painted across his face, his eyes soft as he stared at Stephen.

"Now who's talking in riddles?" mildly teased Stephen as Tony gathered himself.

"I fixed it, the heart energy thing. I fixed it before we kissed," Tony confessed. Stephen's confusion didn't abate. "I accepted this," he said as he gestured idly between himself and Stephen. "Accepted the possibility of an 'us'," he said with a hesitant smile.

Stephen found himself smiling in return. He leaned over and kissed Tony again before getting off the brunet. His cloak immediately attached itself to his shoulders. Stephen held out a hand and helped Tony off the ground. "Well, I guess it's time to face the world," Stephen said, a bit hesitant. "Are you ready?"

"Is anyone?" Tony quickly quipped back. "But I've done this song and dance a few times I know what I'm getting into." His body stiffened, his shoulders were thrown back and Tony took in a breath, his eyes lost their earlier softness and now hardened, battle ready and confident. He tapped the bluetooth device that had been snug against his ear. "FRIDAY, status?" he asked as all sort of data poured in. Stephen could only take in the sight of this incredible man before him and smiled to himself, proud and in awe. Tony was simply amazing.

"Let's go," said Tony as he re-summoned the gauntlet back onto his hand, the burning sensation no longer being an issue. He hummed, pleased at the result and hid the gauntlet again, instead holding out his bare, slightly tanned hand for Stephen to take. Stephen looked at him in slight surprise.

"You didn't think I would do this without you, did you?" asked Tony.

Stephen grinned in response and took Tony's hand. "You wouldn't dare."

**End.**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Extra Scenes

Summary:

Extra scenes post the final chapter. Story ended in Chapter 4, but feel free to read this if you want some more info regarding what happened afterwards.

Chapter Text

Tony met up with the U.N. and held a global press conference with a multitude of translators available in order to speak to everyone. Rocket and the rest of the Guardians had done a remarkable job in fixing the satellites. Thor, Carol, Bruce, Mantis and Drax had worked and helped as many people as they could, first in New York then moved on to neighboring states, eventually leaving Earth all together in order to help all the other planets that were affected by the _snap _.

Multitudes of other 'heroes' emerged through the disaster. Peter helped around Queens, The Defenders cleaned up Hell's Kitchen, and T'Challa loaned out as many people as he was able.

The legionnaires also helped in the more dangerous areas where nuclear power and other types of radiation were abundant.

Pepper managed to get a hold of Stark Industries, contacting everyone she could with a news bulletin blast, taking in the damage of their employees, stock, and everything in between, Happy right there in the fray with her. He calmed her frazzled emotions when things got too much and she was all the more grateful to have him at her side.

Rhodey liaised with the U.S. government and gave his first hand account over the whole _Infinity War _as the media had ended up dubbing the galactic fight. He worked with them to coordinate search and rescue operations as well as help set up and fix any destroyed infrastructures. Once they got a handle of the United States, the president personally granted Rhodey permission to extend his help to other allies.

Fury finally saw that Tony was not going to be controlled nor answer any of his questions. He gathered the ragged remains of SHIELD and joined in the effort to help where they could. They expanded their help to the more underdeveloped areas of the world. Fury dragged Natasha, Steve, and Sam with him, leaving Clint with his remaining daughter.

Steve focused on helping where he could. Doing something was better than thinking. Thinking led to the realization that Bucky wasn't coming back.

Wong sought the other sorcerers at the Sanctums in Hong Kong and London. Together they worked on enforcing the world's mystical seals and barriers just in case of future attacks. He also worked on getting the staircase at the New York Sanctum fixed up and stayed in touch with Stephen whenever necessary.

After Tony's meeting with the U.N. and widespread press conference he secretly worked with Stephen to help along repairs and save people where he could using the Infinity Gauntlet and Stephen's own magic. Once they worked on Earth he contacted Thor and the Guardians and figured that he could probably help other planets as well.

The universe was a little broken right now, but with time and effort it would heal and get stronger, just like Stephen and Tony.


End file.
